Sunday, July 26, 2015

Turbo Kid (2015)

Turbo
Kid is a film with so much hype that genre film fans have been foaming at the
mouth just at the mention of it. But for me this is much more than that.
Francois Simard, Anouk Whissell and Yoan-Karl Whissell, the trio behind RKSS Films,
have been at it for years before getting the big break that they truly deserve.
The trio’s love affair with the Fantasia Film Festival and SPASM has seen their
classic blood and cheese fests such as Demonitron: The 6th
Dimension and Ninja Eliminator. These were filmmakers with an undying passion
and a dream to make a film that only they could be crazy enough to make. Ever
since the 2004 short Le Bagman, which French Canadians are still watching to
this day (I have it on right now while writing this!), RKSS’ persistence has
landed them their first big budget film and let this one not be their last! The
New Zealand/Canadian co-production features actors from both countries and then
Michael Ironside to add some veteran American talent in the mix. Our lead Munro
Chambers, best known for the years he has been in Degrassi, is our underdog
with a dream of his own. Turbo Kid isn’t just a cinematic genre masterpiece,
it’s the product of many years of playing with fake blood, guts, and learning
along the way.

Turbo
Kid follows our titular character (who goes through the entire film nameless)
in a vast wasteland where water is scarce and is the most desired resource
after many years of drought. Humanity is long gone and complete garbage is
considered to be gold. Munro’s character lives alone near a playground and
survives as a scavenger but his heart is still good. Reading any Turbo Rider
comics that he can get his hands on, our lead is then introduced to Apple
(played by Laurence LeBoeuf) a strangely happy girl simply looking for a
friend. Though wary at first, the two become inseparable until Zeus’
(played by Michael Ironside) goons go looking for more victims. On the side we
have Frederic (played by New Zealand actor Aaron Jeffrey) who just lost his
brother to Zeus’ vicious “Pool Party” and now the villain has set his goal upon
eliminating Frederic and anyone who gets in his way as the wasteland’s water
lord. You wouldn’t want to mess with Zeus’ right hand man Skeletron (played by
Edwin Wright) either.

While I can’t
speak for Chambers with not having seen any of his previous work, he seems to
be quite comfortable with his role as it seems to have been made exactly for
him. Chambers isn’t just playing Turbo Kid. He is Turbo Kid. When he gets the chance to be in the shoes of his
fictional idol Turbo Rider, he unwittingly embraces it to live out a dream in a
place where there is none left. Ironside plays the perfect villain but hey, we
all know this isn’t the first time. With films such as Visiting Hours and
Cronenberg’s Scanners to name a few under his belt, we all clearly know that
Ironside can chew up the scenery and this is no exception. The film is
wonderfully dressed right down from the set to the costumes such as the
primitive club to the gnarly weapons and headgear. Unlike the Mad Max franchise
there are no vehicles left so anyone looking for transportation is
going to have to invest in a rundown bicycle. Just because there aren’t many
people left, doesn’t mean anyone is safe in this post apocalyptic world either.
This is a film that proudly sports a body count with our main characters held
responsible whether it’s in Zeus' “Pool Party” or battles held out in the
dreaded wasteland. Of course, it wouldn’t be a RKSS production without its share
of over the top cartoonish and gory violence or its touches of comedy
throughout the film. It’s actually quite surprising to say the least of the
various collaborations from the Canadian government and other affiliates that
all listed at the beginning of the film so fast, it wowed me that so many
companies could invest in just one film! In the end it is clear that this is
the love child of the RKSS trio more than anything else and these are all pros
in the business, including executive producer Jason Eisener (Treevenge, Hobo
with a Shotgun, ABCs of Death) who decided to put faith into them.

What else could I say
about Turbo Kid really? Francois Simard, Anouk Whissell and Yoan-Karl Whissell
maybe new in town in the bigger budget film industry but they have been around
for a very long time. The five minute standing ovation at Fanatasia
which left the directors in tears was the moment that they realized that they
have come full circle. If there is a lesson to learn from this is that dreams
don’t just happen. They come from years of hard work, whether it is just a few
to over a decade. For this trio, the dream probably never ends because there is
no stopping here. They’re only getting started.

Written By Elise Holmes

Elise Holmes is not your average writer. Dedicated
to her Evil Dead fan site The Deadite Slayer, she is doing Fantasia
Fest coverage this year for Blood Brothers! Check out her site HERE!

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